Sunday Journal Prompt

 “It's the sides of the mountain which sustain life, not the top.”

– Robert M. Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance 

When we’re working toward a goal, we’re often focused on the end result. While envisioning ourselves having accomplished the goal can be motivating, we can also find fulfillment in the process. The journey itself becomes its own reward—all the little steps it takes to get to our ultimate goal: the classes on the way to a degree, the evening workouts with friends training alongside you for a marathon, the morning writing sessions that lead up to a book manuscript. 

Rather than speeding up life and seemingly holding our breath until we reach our goals, we can relax into and enjoy the process. In the end, we may find the journey to be more fulfilling that the summit we seek.

How can you find more fulfillment in the journey toward your goal?

Sunday Journal Prompt

“An integral being knows without going, sees without looking and accomplishes without doing.” 

– Lao Tzu, ancient Chinese poet and philosopher

One of Deepak Chopra’s spiritual laws of success is the Law of the Least Effort. Embedded in it is the notion of going with the flow without resistance. The daffodil bulbs in my garden automatically rise each spring, and the leaves on my maple trees effortlessly fall in autumn. They don’t strain. So often we try to force something into being—a relationship, a promotion—instead of letting it happen naturally.

When we go against our instincts and try to be someone else or live the life that someone else wants us to live, we feel drained. It can be exhausting to exert so much energy to conform or to chase power or control. Relaxing our effort may help us discover harmony, joy and a new level of accomplishment. 

Where in your life can you let things happen naturally rather than forcing something into being?

Sunday Journal Prompt

“Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fail.” 

– Confucius 

When I walk in the woods near my home, I am drawn to visit a cairn, a stack of rocks alongside a path. Sometimes the stack is tall and sturdy, and sometimes it appears fragile, ready for a strong wind or heavy snowfall to tip it over. Other times it appears to have been violently kicked over and destroyed.

Over the years, I’ve never seen anyone else stop to rebuild it, but the cairn rises each time it’s decimated, reshaped into a new structure. More recently, six small stacks appeared in place of it. A silent community works together to keep it going. Even when reshaped with new stones, the cairn maintains its essence while rising and becoming a stronger version of itself.

How can you and the community around you help you rise and reshape yourself after loss or failure?

Sunday Journal Prompt

“Meet the people.” 

– Cicely O’Donovan, my grandmother 

Last night I attended a beautiful celebration of love for my dear friend and her soulmate, which they shared with people from different walks of their lives: family members, neighbors, co-workers from 30+ years of different jobs, college friends, grad-school classmates, old friends, new friends. I felt the magic that the couple felt as they greeted loved ones, some of whom traveled across the world to be there.

An introvert at heart, I’ll admit my instinct at parties is to stay in the safety zone of chatting with familiar people. While I had lovely reconnections with my grad-school friends, I intentionally initiated conversations with people I didn’t know. Experience has taught me that I’m likely to enjoy my friends’ friends. Still, it’s scary, especially when a group of folks knows each other. The upshot: I got to learn more about the friend we have in common and experienced a meaningful connection with a new-to-me person. An extrovert who loved a party, my grandma Cicely would often ask me about who I’d met recently. By learning about the people in my life, she learned more about me.

Perhaps paradoxically, by stepping away from the event several times, I found myself wanting to stay at the party longer. Throughout the evening, I gave myself time alone to walk around the barn and take photos from a distance. That time alone helped me process input and recharged me throughout the evening.

How can you take advantage of an opportunity to form a meaningful connection with a new person?